Beautiful Kayla is graduating from Sacramento State University this Spring! An amazing person with a ton of spirit who has big things ahead! Congrats to Kayla on her graduation and her work in the wine industry! Here are a few favorites from her photo session at the Old Sugar Mill.

Senior year is an exciting time, and what better way to cherish the memories than with a personalized senior portrait session?! Brooke decided to take her photos with a horse she has known almost her whole life and tie in something she loves to do. Here are some favorites from this Fall session.

Senior portraits are such a fun experience and a great time to dress up and celebrate your graduation. For this shoot we had two class of 2013 and one class of 2014 senior join us. First the girls got professional makeup done by the artist team from Dolce Vita beauty: Veronica Marshall and Mariela Medina. Then they were styled with wardrobe by Jesse and Shania Larrosa. For the finishing touches, they are wearing jewelry from Stella&dot, provided by independent consultant, Kim Campinelli, and handmade flower accessories from Celia Rose Inc.

The look and feel of this shoot was really magical thanks to the amazing staff out at the Historic Oakdale Ranch in Esparto, CA. Their beautiful venue is a new hot spot wedding venue in Yolo County! Brides looking for an outdoor location should check it out!

Special thanks also goes out to my assistant on this shoot, Kelli Stoffregen!

Last weekend at the studio we got the team together for a unique mother and daughters photo shoot. The Miles family is getting ready to send their oldest daughter off to college, and this photo shoot was a great way to celebrate these close-knit ladies before she moves away. I have always felt that family portraits should not stop when the kids grow up, and loved working with these teenage daughters and their mom. Credit to Amanda Walker for the wonderful hair styling, Veronica Marshall for the stunning makeup, and to Jesse Larrosa for the one-of-a-kind custom dress making. Special thanks, also, to Quentin Carbajal for assisting me with this shoot.

Stay tuned for a behind the scenes look at this shoot coming soon from the talented Ian Webb!

Last weekend we had a very special shoot in the studio at Amy Shuman Photography. High school junior, Kennedy, and high school senior, Tate, joined us for a unique day. Let’s just say this wasn’t your standard “senior portrait” session… Of course, the fact that both of these girls are immensely talented dancers added to the fun. They arrived at the studio in downtown Davis, CA for hair by Amanda Walker (of Salon Jewel), and makeup by Veronica Marshall (Dolce Vita Beauty). Next, it was time for a custom outfit, built live “on the set” by Jesse Larrosa, costume desginer. We started with a few portraits, and then it was time to head back to hair and makeup to add some dramatic flair for the dancing shots. And then, the jumping began! I loved watching the way the fabric moved with each jump and leap. I was so happy with the end result, and the beautiful art that the team was able to create. Enjoy!

A fun behind the scenes image of the two girls together. These dresses were pretty heavy, and its impressive they were able to move in them.

More behind the scenes of the team hard at work. I was working, too, but from behind the camera, of course.

And here we are, the creative team, trying to jump just like these awesome models… “trying” is the key word… To our credit, its really hard to know when the automatic camera timer is going to go off, so we were really just guessing with our jumps…

Want to watch a video on what things were like behind the scenes? Check it out here:

Quentin is this year’s official senior representative, and is also an intern at Amy Shuman Photography. It was so much fun to have Quentin in front of the camera, though I did miss him being there helping behind the scenes. Here are a few of my favorites.

We started at the Woodland Opera House, which has been Quentin’s “home away from home” for nearly 10 years. I had the privilege of being his first drama instructor back in Show Biz Kidz, 10 years ago (perhaps I am dating myself there…).

We then moved outside to take some pictures in the daylight. The overcast skies were in our favor for these fun senior photos.

If you are a student at Woodland High School and know Quentin, ask him for a special promo card and get a free gift when you book your senior session!

It was such a treat to take Kylie’s senior portraits this past week. We used the beautiful UC Davis arboretum and nearby pasture for this session, and Kylie was a great sport despite the strong winds! I met Kylie last year in the portrait photography workshop I taught, and she is a sweet, and very talented girl. She is still making her final choices about colleges, but knows that she wants to pursue a career in teaching, which I think she will be wonderful at!